A functional genomic links differential sperm methylation from overweight men to transposable element regulation in paternal origins of disease risk in children

The occurrence of childhood neurodevelopmental disorders has been steadily increasing for decades yet we have little understanding of modes of inheritance implicated in these diseases. Epidemiology studies have revealed an association between an elevated paternal BMI and an increased risk for neurodevelopmental disorders in children, suggesting non-genetic modes of inheritance may be involved. Epigenetic marks –like DNA methylation at cytosines– are especially susceptible to environmental, diet and lifestyle changes. Yet, whether a man’s weight influences the sperm methylome and potentially impacts offspring development remains unresolved. Using MethylC capture (MCC)-sequencing, we identified over 38000 differentially methylated CpG (DMCs) in the sperm of men with an elevated BMI, with many occurring in regions that were enriched for neural gene and disease ontologies. Differentially methylated regions (DMRs) were enriched at transposable elements that can act as active enhancers during human zygotic genome activation, and at gene promoters for early lineage specification. These results suggest that sperm methylome alterations that are linked to elevated BMI may influence key embryonic transcriptional process, notably associated with trophectoderm and placental development.

• Type: Epigenetics
• Archive: European Genome-phenome Archive (EGA)